Hammock-support.



l. E. PALMER.

HAMMOCK SUPPORT.

(Application filed Aug. 25, 1898.)

N0. 664,672. Patented Dec. 25, I900.

(No Model.)

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ISAAC E. PALMER, OF MIDDLETOWN, CONNECTICUT.

HAMMOCK-SUPPORT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 664,672, dated December 25, 1900.

Application filed August 25, 1898. Serial No. 689,467. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IsAAc E. PALMER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Middletown, in the county of Middlesex and State of Connecticut, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in Hammock-Supports, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in hammock-supports in which provision ismade for moving the pairs of supportinglegs bodily toward and away from each other to diminish or extend the available length of the support, as may be desired.

A practical embodiment of my invention is represented in the accompanying drawings, in WhlOlb- Figure l is a View of the support in side elevation, showing the pairs of legs near the ends of the backbone or ridge-pole and the latter extended. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the backbone contracted and the pairs of legs adjusted toward each other from the end positions. Fig. 3 is an end view. Fig. 4 is a transverse section on the line 4 4 of Fig. l, and Fig. 5 is a view in side elevation showing a non-extensible backbone or ridge-pole.

In the form shown in Figs. 1 to 4, inclusive, I have shown the backbone arranged to both telescope and fold in addition to the adjustment of the pairs of legs along the backbonesections to which they are connected, while in Fig. 5 the pairs of legs are movable toward and away from each other only by their adjust-ment relatively to the backbone. The extensible backbone here shown is of the telescope type and consists of two male sections A A, hinged together at a, and two female sect-ions B B, arranged to receive the free ends of the male sections with an easy sliding movement. The telescoping sections are here shown as circular in cross-section, but may be made either polygonal or oval, if so desired.

The sections B B are seen red in the desired adjustment along the sections A A by means of clamping rollers or disks b, eccentrically mounted in the end of a short skeleton sleeve C, screwed on the inner ends of the sections B B", one on each, the rollers or disks 1) being provided with operating-handles b for throwing them into and out of gripping contact with the sections A A.

The members D D of each pair of legs have their upper ends provided with castings in the nature of skeleton socket-pieces d d, terminating at their ends adjacent to the backbone in curved-faced shoes at and hinged to sliding collars E E on the backbone by pintles e e. The curve on the face of the shoes 61 is less sharp than the curve of the exterior of the backbone, asclearly shown in Fig. 3, so that when the legs D D are spread apart beyond the normal position the collars E E, with the legs, may be slid freely along the backbone, and when the desired adjustment is reached thelegs may be locked to the backbone by drawing them together, thereby causing the faces of the shoes 61 below the pintles to tightly grip the backbone. The legs may be held in their closed adjustment by means of a flexible cord or other suitable brace F, detachably secured to one or both of the legs in any well-known or approved manner.

For shipping purposes the legs may be removed from the backbone and the sections B B slid toward each other and then folded togcther by means of the hinge a.

In the form of backbone A (shown in Fig. 5) both the hinged and telescoping features are omitted, while the legs are made adjustable in a manner quite similar to that already described. It is obvious that the hinged feature of the backbone might be omitted and the telescoping feature retained. The bodily movement of the legs along the backboneadmits of utilizing a ground or floor space of less extent than the minimum length of the backbone and also ad mitsof hanging the hammock in a more or less upright or reading position while maintaining its points of support substantially over the pairs of legs, thus reing the legs in their closed adjustment, substantially as set forth. 7

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention Ihave signed my name, in pres- I 7 en ce of two witnesses, this 5th day of August, I 5

1898. r V V ISAAC PALMER. Witnesses:

JOHN G. PALMER, J. B. LALLANDE. 

